| SEATTLE - January 7, 1999 - After winning Seattle�s Best
Classic Martini five consecutive years in a row, Oliver�s in the Mayflower
Park Hotel has, in cooperation with the Hotel Vancouver, launched the First
International Martini Classic Challenge between four of Seattle�s best
martini bars and four of Vancouver, B.C.�s best martini bars.
�Eight international Martini contenders and nine world-class judges
will make for stiff competition in this first-time event,� said Marie Dempcy,
Vice President and co-owner of the Mayflower Park Hotel. Dempcy also
noted from the new book, �Martini, Straight Up: The Classic American Cocktail,�
Nikita Khruschev, when served a martini, called it �the USA�s most lethal
weapon.�
In the planning stages for nearly a year, the first International Martini
Classic Challenge will pit Oliver�s in the Mayflower Park Hotel, The Metropolitan
Grill, The Four Seasons Olympic Hotel Garden Court, and Stars Bar &
Dining against Vancouver B.C.�s top spots: 900 West in the Hotel Vancouver,
Gerard in The Sutton Place Hotel, Deliliah�s and Joe Fortes. Judges
will head to Vancouver, B.C. on Friday, February 5 for the first leg of
the international sip-off. The final round will be held on Saturday,
February 6 in Seattle.
The Mayflower Park Hotel and the Hotel Vancouver-Canadian Pacific Hotels
are partners in presenting the event which will conclude with celebrated
trophies for three international titles:
-
Best International Classic Martini (gin or vodka)
-
Best International Specialty Martini
-
Best International Martini Food (food to accompany a Martini)
To avoid an international crisis and maintain accuracy, an accounting firm
will tally the judges final scores. Special overnight rates are being
offered by each hotel for the event to encourage spectators cheering on
their favorite bar to make it a two-nation vacation weekend get-away.
Built in 1927, the beautifully restored Mayflower Park Hotel is one
of the last remaining locally owned and independent hotels in the Seattle
area. It is a member of Historic Hotels of America® which includes
such other notables as The Greenbrier in West Virginia; The Brown Palace
in Denver; and The Plaza in New York. Readers of Seattle Magazine
recently voted the hotel �Best Getaway Hotel in Seattle.� The Mayflower
Park Hotel is operated by local owners Birney and Marie Dempcy. |
